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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25878043">The Life and Times of the Sultana To Be</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ERL33/pseuds/ERL33'>ERL33</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Aladdin (2019)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Backstory, Established Relationship, F/M, Family Feels, Found Family, Insomnia, Nightmares, Panic Attacks, Post-Canon, Sultan!Jasmine</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 09:28:12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>16,925</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25878043</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ERL33/pseuds/ERL33</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Jasmine had known that becoming Sultana was the role she was born to play. She had read about it, talked about it, learned about it. She was ready for it.</p><p>Being a wife to a former street thief... she couldn't remember even one story that had prepared her for this.</p><p>In which there is sneaking, honeymoons, family bonds, and nightmares.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Aladdin/Jasmine (Disney)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>55</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>The Life and Times of the Sultana To Be</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I can't write summaries to save my life. This head weasel hasn't let me go in months so here it is. Enjoy!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>One would think that after being named the next Sultan, Crown Princess Jasmine of Agrabah would be on cloud nine. She had everything she had worked for. The crown was in her grasp, her father deferred meetings with the advisors to her more often than not to show he truly meant for her to rule, and she had even managed to fall in love. Everything should have been perfect.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Alas, life is never quite that simple. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jasmine was… frustrated. She wasn’t a fan of mysteries and her new husband was absolutely full of them. At every turn she learned something new about him, for better or for worse. He was incredible at math but maps stumped him. It had taken her over a week to realize that he was actually illiterate. Not that he would admit to it. After asking Kahil, the former djinn admitted he had noticed the same thing she had when he had presented the laws of Agrabah to Aladdin for his almost final wish. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Aladdin’s manners were unpolished but somehow he managed to charm even the stuffiest of guests. Despite his charms, he detested social events with a vehemence she had never encountered. After the first few feasts he skipped, claiming to have an upset stomach or horrible headache, she caught on to his tricks and forced him to go to the infirmary if he was feeling ill… which he hated even more than the parties. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She found knives on his person regardless of the event… including when he slept. She finally asked him to put them away in the trunk. He tossed and turned the entire first night. Once he even woke her with a gasp as his hands scrabbled at his empty scabbards. She told him that she didn’t mind if leaving them off bothered him that much but he insisted that he wanted to get used to sleeping unarmed. After another couple nights of restless sleep, she realized he wasn’t waking her in the middle of the night anymore. One more step to finally having a normal sleep schedule, he had joked when she asked about it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sometimes she’d find him on a roof or high cupboard in their wing looking as comfortable as a bird in the air. She laughed and teased him about being as bad as Iago for lurking in high places. It drew a laugh but she noticed he stopped perching as much after that… when he knew she’d be coming back. Whenever she arrived on time, he would lounge on the bed or the couch or stand on the ground. But when she surprised him, he would still be on top of whatever piece of furniture had taken his fancy. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She wasn’t sure if she should address these idiosyncrasies in a more serious way. He seemed to be settling in well otherwise. When she asked how he was getting on, he always had a story to regal her with of his escapades within the palace walls. He seemed happy. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It wasn’t until a month after their marriage, four months after they met that first time in the market, that the underlying issues boiled to the surface. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sultan, I apologize for my interruption but I can bear this no longer!” A shrill voice echoed through the audience chamber as Jasmine and her staff of advisors poured over maps and reports of harvest quotas. Jasmine’s head shot up to look at the woman standing in the door, struggling against the guards. Hakim followed her with a harried look on his face. With a small smile for her most trusted soldier, she beckoned for the guards to unhand the furious woman. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>When she reached the middle of the room, the woman fell to her knees and placed her head on the floor, an ultimate sign of respect. Jasmine approached her and helped her to rise. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How may I be of service to you?” She asked. This brought actual tears to her subject’s eyes. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sultan, I apologize but I must inform you that your husband has been stealing,” she said in a breathless voice. Jasmine managed to keep a straight face at the woman’s obvious despair. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s mine is his. He steals nothing from this palace as my husband. What has he been taking?” Jasmine states with absolute certainty. The woman blanched and bowed her head again. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Baskets of food from the kitchen, Sultan,” the cook, judging by her apron and strong arms, said shamefaced. Jasmine smiles again. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sure Aladdin has a good reason to be taking food. I will speak with him about communicating when he needs something so it doesn’t interrupt the meal preparations when things suddenly go missing. Would that appease the kitchen?” Jasmine asked. The cook bobbed her head gratefully, tears truly streaming down her face now. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you, Majesty. You are as wise as your mother and father before you,” she praised. Jasmine fought a blush as the woman bowed herself out. The guards glared at her as she retreated but she shot them a look that had them glancing away. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wait!” Jasmine called after a moment. The woman stopped and waited for her command, “What is your name, if you please?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Kira, if it pleases your Majesty,” the woman answered obediently. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you for your honesty with me, Kira. If you need anything else, please send notice through Hakim or a message runner,” Jasmine ordered subtlety, the smallest hint of steel in her voice. Kira nodded, bowing even lower. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As you wish, Sultan. Thank you,” she said gratefully as she finally backed out of the room and the doors close behind Hakim. He looked ashamed. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My Sultan, I tried to stop her. I apologize -“ a flick of her hand silenced him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you for your hard work, Hakim. But you above all should know that when a woman has something to say, she will say her piece,” Jasmine teased. His face broke out into a relieved smile and his shoulders lost some of their tension. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That I do, Sultan,” he agreed with a bow. He started to leave but stopped when she cleared her throat. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I have a task for one of your men later. Please find me when this meeting finishes,” Jasmine told him. He bowed and left without another word. She turned back to her advisors and before long they were settling the final details of their plans for the harvest. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jasmine had barely settled at her desk in her private study when Hakim entered the room with a bow, hand over his heart. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You have a task to issue, Sultan?” He asked impassively. She nodded. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I would like a security detail placed on my husband. Not for protection nor for suspicion,” she told him as she dipped her ink pen in the well. “I need to know where he goes and why. I cannot help him adjust to the palace and royal life if I do not have a baseline of behavior.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The ensuing silence stretched too long and she looked up. Hakim shifted from foot to foot, a deep frown on his face as he looked at her. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You do not think this wise? I can’t be everywhere at once. I can’t watch him,” she said a little defensively. Hakim raised his hands in surrender immediately. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course not, Sultan. But perhaps it would be better to ask him rather than to spy on him,” Hakim advised as delicately as he knew how… which wasn’t much. Jasmine actually blushed then. She hadn’t thought of it that way.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He’ll lose any tail we set on him, won’t he?” she asked. Hakim nodded immediately. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He is quite practiced at it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do you think he will actually answer me if I ask him my questions?” Jasmine asked in a rare moment of desperation. Hakim shrugged. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re more likely to get an answer from him of his own will than by manipulation. He is better at that than any of us here in the palace,” he answered with a bow. Jasmine smiled at this. He was right. She knew he was. But that left her with few options to learn what she wished to know. Then his words sank in and her eyes lit up with the spark of a truly fantastic idea.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hakim, for his part, started to sweat. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hakim, please send my husband to me. I need to speak with him,” she commanded with a grin that would be called evil on a less lovely face. The guard shivered a bit and bowed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As my Sultan commands,” he hurried out of the room and closed the door behind him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jasmine grinned wider as she moved the paper she was writing on out of the way to pen a proclamation on a fresh piece with unprecedented enthusiasm.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>*</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ten minutes later, Aladdin swung in through her window. She jumped but didn’t spill even a drop of ink. She’d grown accustomed to his sudden appearances enough that she didn’t drop or spill things anymore.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I heard my Sultan requests my presence,” he said with an elaborate bow. She smiled up at him sweetly and her heart melted at the sight of him. He was dressed in a fine cream coat and billowing cream pants with gold embroidery, not unlike the first outfit she met him in as a prince. His skin seemed to glow next to the bright fabric. She stood, unable to help herself as she walked around the desk and met him at the front of the desk in a passionate kiss. Smiling into his lips, she reached up to run her hands through his hair.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I love your hair. Have I ever told you that?” she asked when they surface for air. He blushed just like he always did when she complimented him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Maybe once or twice. Loudly, when I said I was thinking about shaving it,” he chuckled as she wrinkled her nose in disgust. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I still stand by my opinion. You’d look ridiculous bald,” she argued with a pout so pronounced that even Aladdin could tell she was teasing him. He pressed a little closer to her and she bumped right into the desk. They kissed for a few more minutes as their hands wandered lazily, as if they had all the time in the world. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The sound of the door slamming open had them jumping apart like teenagers caught in mischief instead of two married adults. Hakim rushed in before stopping dead with his mouth only slightly ajar. He bowed and held out a scroll in one hand.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I apologize for the interruption, Sultan, but this message came from Shiribad by urgent messenger.” he panted out, head still bowed. Aladdin backed up a few steps to let Jasmine approach the head of her royal guard unhindered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Without wasting time responding, she took the scroll from his hand and broke the seal with the Shiribad royal insignia on it. Her breath caught as she read the message. Finally, with a relieved sigh, she looked up at the two men.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Everything is okay. My mother’s sister, my aunt, is coming for a visit in the next two days. Apparently, she was taken by the whim of visiting and they wanted to give us as much notice as possible by sending an urgent messenger ahead. Hakim, inform the guards and send Selma to me. We must prepare a guest suite for her and her entourage,” she instructed. Hakim bowed again and left the room at quick walk that would have been mistaken for a run on a less dignified man.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>When she turned, she found Aladdin inspecting one of the maps on her desk with feigned interest. She sighed and approached him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sorry, my love, but there is much to do all of the sudden. We will have some time to ourselves soon,” she promised. He just shrugged and started to back away with that sheepish smile on his face that she loved and hated at the same time.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll be here,” he promised, almost to the balcony before she ever realized what he’s doing. She tried to scramble after him but he jumped over the rail and onto Carpet before she could reach the edge of the dais where her desk sat. </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He’s so quick. I really must find time to exercise so I can keep up with him.</span>
  </em>
  <span> She lamented in the privacy of her own mind before hurrying out to make the arrangements for her incoming relative.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The welcoming party was as splendid and decadent as the greeting parties thrown for her suitors when she had them. Thankfully, her staff was well practiced in the art of pulling a party from the larder on short notice. Jasmine was surprised with just how little she had to attend to once the word was out. She spent some of that time looking for Aladdin but he was nowhere to be found. Instead of fruitlessly inquiring about his whereabouts, she took a dip in her private pool to swim laps. This relieved some of her restless energy to the point that she could consult with her new handmaidens about the furnishings for the guest suite as well as her’s and Aladdin’s evening wear for the banquet that night. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>By the time she had dressed, one of his footmen had wrestled Aladdin through a bath and into his clothes at lightning speed. She only had time to kiss his lips gently before they walked out to the entrance hall to greet her aunt and the small entourage who travelled with her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The woman was a legend around the Mediterranean for her skills in survival and swordcraft. Within minutes of meeting her, Jasmine was completely enchanted and invited her to sit next to her at dinner. She grinned at Aladdin as they walked back up the stairs out of the room. His answering smile looked forced but she was too giddy at the prospect of hearing some of her aunt’s stories to comment.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>All through the meal, her aunt regaled them with tales of her adventures around the Med. Jasmine lowered her guard ever so slightly, confessing that she had never left the city of Agrabah. Her aunt was horrified at the very thought. Then she turned to Aladdin.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And you, nephew, where have you travelled?” she asked as she sipped fruit juice. He smirked and replied,</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“All the way to the end of the earth and back,” he answered truthfully. Jasmine kicked him under the table. “But I was asleep for most of that journey. I have very little memory of anything outside of Agrabah.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I see. And do you have plans to travel?” Aunt Maupin asked after a long silence. Jasmine shook her head sadly to hide her devious grin. This was going to work out splendidly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I am taking over for my father as Sultan so much of my time is spent in meetings or going over reports,” she admitted. Her aunt tutted as she put down her wine.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My dear, even your mother and father took a honeymoon after they were married. He was a young sultan then with no one to take over the royal duties but they still managed a few weeks away,” the imposing woman told them. Jasmine let her face light up at the idea.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A honeymoon… what a phenomenal idea! I shall speak to my father about it as soon as we have a free moment,” Jasmine promised, knowing she had already asked her father for a meeting earlier in the afternoon for the next day. Honestly, this couldn’t have worked out more perfectly. “He can keep an eye on things for a week or two while we get out of the city for a bit.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course he can. He’s been doing this for years, dear. Two weeks won’t trouble him too terribly much, I’m sure,” her aunt agreed with a smile on her lips. Turning to her husband, she told him the new plan. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sounds great! I’m sure Ge- sorry, Kahil and Dalia would love to have us,” Aladdin agreed. Jasmine balked for a moment at the thought of having to share even a moment of Aladdin’s attention before dismissing the thought. Seeing Dalia and Kahil again would be wonderful and they would still have plenty of time to themselves. After all, the seafaring couple was also newly married. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As long as they’ll have us,” Jasmine replied tactfully before kissing him on the check and returning to her conversation with her aunt. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>By the time the meal ended, Jasmine had all the details neatly ironed out in her mind. It took only a few instructions, one messenger, one summons, and a decree (which she had already written that afternoon when the idea had initially taken her) to finalize her and Aladdin’s honeymoon plans. She couldn’t help but feel a little smug at how neatly the whole matter had been handled. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>No muss or fuss, just done. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Now it was time for the party. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jasmine looked around for her wandering cohort and found him hiding by one of the fountains near the back of the room. She wanted to be annoyed but the look on his face telegraphed clearly, to her at least, that he was absolutely miserable. As she went to approach him, a concubine she’d never seen before beat her to him. Jealousy rose in her belly and up her throat as the scantily clad woman toyed and flirted with </span>
  <em>
    <span>her</span>
  </em>
  <span> husband. And to make matters worse, Aladdin looked happy to see her. Relieved, even. He didn’t reach for her but also didn’t protest when she took his sleeve and pulled him through a backdoor into the corridor. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jasmine boiled with fury as she followed them casually. She didn’t want to draw attention to the fact that she just caught her husband leaving the party with another woman. As she slipped out the door she heard low voices. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“-believe you snuck in here,” Aladdin sounded like he was laughing. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What? You think you’re the only one who can come and go as they please. Security was lax as hell with the surprise party. I even took care of a few of the less savory people who tried to sneak in,” a woman’s voice responded. She sounded as if she came from the rougher part of the city, much like Aladdin when he forgot to sound ‘princely’. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And what do we owe you for the service?” Aladdin teased. The woman actually giggled. Jasmine reigned in her temper before she threw them both in the dungeon. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Madam misses you, Aladdin. You haven’t visited in ages…” the woman’s voice was silky smooth and deadly soft. Aladdin chuckled. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Things have been a little busy. But tell her I’ll come right after my honeymoon,” he replied. Jasmine felt her eyebrows shoot into her hairline. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do you promise?” she simpered. The very sound made Jasmine’s teeth hurt. Apparently, Aladdin didn’t have that problem because he laughed again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Cross my heart,” he swore and she giggled in response.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think Madam can spare you that long. But if I were you… bring her something pretty,” the woman suggested, her voice growing fainter as she moved away from Jasmine’s hiding spot. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll keep that in mind. You can find your way out?” Aladdin asked. Silence filled the corridor until it was interrupted by his chuckle. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Come on, Abu. Time to return to the torture chamber,” he sighed and she could hear the click of his boots on the stone floor. Quiet as a mouse, she slipped back into the party. Mingling the way she had been born and bred to, no one noticed that both of the hosts had been absent for some minutes. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The rest of the party passed in a blur of colors and faces. By the time she returned to their room, Jasmine was exhausted and distraught. Who could possibly be this ‘Madam’ that Aladdin promised to visit? What did this mysterious person want with her husband?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Aladdin had beaten her back to the suite. He had slipped out not long after his little escapade. She found him casually swinging from a hammock he had the staff install on the balcony. Without a word she let her new handmaiden undress her and put her in a light nightgown in her dressing room. When she returned, she found him smiling up at her just like the first time. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You look divine tonight, Sultan,” he purred in a voice that always made her nerves fizzle with pleasure. Despite her fury over the evening's events she felt herself softening towards him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And you look exhausted,” she replied. He shrugged. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The life of a prince consort is rough, sultan. But I do it for the good of my people,” he gestured grandly and managed to fall out of the hammock in the process. She couldn’t help but laugh at his antics. He really had a way of making her forget her worries. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And so graceful too,” she teased as she pulled back the bedcovers and slipped between them. A moment later Aladdin joined her, snuggling close and wrapping his arms around her. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I missed you,” he whispered in her ear. And there were those shivers again. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We just had dinner. And we were at the same party,” </span>
  <em>
    <span>when you weren’t sneaking away to rendezvous with another woman</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah but that wasn't you tonight, not my Jasmine. That was The Sultan, Ruler of Agrabah. It’s different,” he said, a little sadly. She turned over to look him in the eyes. He had a little, self-deprecating smile on his face that she hated. It meant he was thinking about someone or something that had made him feel worthless. She never wanted him to feel like that when she was around. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I am both. I can’t separate the two,” she murmured. He shakes his head. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And I don’t want you to! Not really. It was just so nice to be Jasmine and Aladdin… not Sultan and Prince Consort. It’s a lot of pressure for a street thief you know,” he said, exhaustion making him more honest than usual. She nodded. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know what you mean. That’s why I jumped on the idea of a honeymoon. We can be just Aladdin and Jasmine on our friends’ boat for two whole weeks. I received a messenger on my way out of the party that Dalia and Kahil are on their way. They’ll be in port in 2 days. We leave in four. Give them time to load any supplies and do any repairs they need,” she told him, snuggling closer to his chest. His grip on her waist dispelled any fear of his suspected infidelity. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Two whole weeks just being us,” he murmured dreamily. With that thought, they both drifted off to peaceful sleep. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The honeymoon was everything they had hoped for. They boarded Dalia and Kahil's boat in the early morning four days after the announcement that they were going away. Hakim had suggested that a large boat with the royal sails leave the same day in the same direction, a little ways ahead of the smaller vessel, to draw any attacks away from their persons. It meant that there were only three soldiers aboard The Djinn as personal guards to the royal couple. Within a few days, the men had grown comfortable leaving off their golden uniforms and keeping their weapons in plain scabbards that wouldn’t draw unwanted attention. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Dalia had been overjoyed to host her oldest friend and former mistress aboard her new home. She was so proud of what they had accomplished with her backwages and some money that Kahil had hidden over the years.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jasmine had sworn Kahil to secrecy not to tell Dalia that the money had actually been the dowry that she had paid for her. Kahil had wanted to argue but Jasmine had insisted. Dalia was just as much an orphan as Aladdin but her parents had worked in the palace. When they had passed during a plague outbreak when they were children, Jasmine had sworn to take care of her friend to the end of her days. It had been her first inkling that she would be a good ruler, something her mother had pointed out to her. Without Dalia, neither of them would have made it to where they were today. Jasmine would never forget the debt of gratitude she owed her. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>So when Dalia tried to give them the Captain’s quarters, Jasmine and Aladdin had argued vehemently. The other couple had just moved in and should not be displaced by royalty. Doubly so because they were friends, not royalty, on this trip. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The guest quarters were more than enough for both of them… and far away from the other cabins. Jasmine had found that her new husband was an impressive partner in the bedroom. As the princess, she had remained a virgin despite her (mostly private) protests. Aladdin had not been so restricted. In quiet moments, she wondered where he had learned… perhaps that woman from the banquet had been more than an old friend? Perhaps-</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Nope, she wasn’t even considering that. His past was his past and she wasn’t going to dig into it like that. If she wanted to know, she’d have to ask like Hakim had suggested. Anything else would be shameful…</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Right?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>On their first night back in the palace, Jasmine found herself hustled into an evening meeting with her father and advisors to go over what had happened in her absence. She wanted to protest that this could be handled the next day but her father looked tired and she didn’t want him to stress during the night. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She called a hard stop for dinner, pleading fatigue and promising to finish up the last details in the morning. It had nothing to do with the fact that Aladdin wouldn’t expect her back for hours and if he was going to sneak out, this would be the time. The most important of the objectives had been addressed so the council grudgingly conceded. She thanked them and hurried back to her rooms. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Aladdin wasn’t there.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She fumed as she threw on her plainest outfit and shawl from their honeymoon wanderings. Not even one night after their </span>
  <em>
    <span>honeymoon</span>
  </em>
  <span> and he was sneaking out to visit this ‘Madam’. How dare he!</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She hurried down to the kitchens, snagging a basket and slipping out the servant’s entrance without the guards noticing. That should have worried her more but at that moment, she was grateful for their inattention. She scanned the crowd and saw the flash of a dirty purple cap and the flick of a certain monkey’s tail. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He wasn’t hard to follow, contrary to what she would have thought. Aladdin made very little attempt to hide. But perhaps it was just as well because no one looked at him sideways as he strolled among the stalls. He had a basket on his arm just like hers and his bag around his body. She kept pace with him with only a few detours to duck out of sight when he glanced around. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>As they reached the end of the night market, he looked around more and more often before slipping into a back alley. She followed swiftly, dodging the few people this far away from the main square. As she rounded the corner, she saw him knock on a blue door at the end of a block of houses. It opened and he was pulled inside by a jeweled hand. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Reigning in her blooming temper, Jasmine snuck up to the window next to the door he had disappeared into. A heavy curtain covered it and she cursed it silently. Looking up, she saw a tiny window that looked more like an air vent glowing from the light inside the house. She scrambled up the convenient wall to peer into the lower floor of the home. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Only it wasn’t a home. She could tell immediately by the scantily clad women and rich furnishings that this was a brothel. Aladdin had snuck out of the palace to visit a concubine at a brothel. She wanted to scream but managed to bite her tongue as she watched the scene before her unfold. Aladdin looked more relaxed here than she had ever seen him except for on The Djinn and before he knew she was royalty. He greeted every woman by name with a smile, laughing as they teased him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You never come to visit anymore, Al,” pouted a woman dressed in vibrant red and gold as she lounged on a large pillow. He smirked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ve been a little busy saving Agrabah and getting married, Khepri,” he snapped back. She rolled her eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Stillllllllll,” she whined before it gave way to laughter.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Madam has missed you,” another woman in deep navy blue and silver jewelry told him more seriously. He frowned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know. And I wanted to get away before this. But everything happened pretty fast and sneaking out when people actually notice is… new,” he told them. Jasmine was shocked at how honest he was with these women. He hadn’t so much as mentioned an itch in her presence in weeks. Not since before their honeymoon at least, when he mentioned he was a little tired.  Honestly, she would have thought he was entirely content if she hadn’t caught his expression in moments when he thought no one was watching or noticing his idiosyncrasies that others dismissed as oddities. To hear him confess something so close to a complaint to these strangers made her blood boil.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was her </span>
  <em>
    <span>husband</span>
  </em>
  <span>. She was supposed to care for him as he cared for her. How could she do that if he hid everything behind a sly smirk and a wink?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As he made his way through the room, Jasmine noticed that none of the women reached for him. It was still early for clients so there were no other men in the room yet they didn’t try to seduce him. Instead they teased and talked, maybe flicking him with a veil when he said something snarky that made them laugh. It was all very comfortable and sweet and she hated every second of it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>At the back of the room, a cloth covered doorway billowed away from three small bodies as they hurdled into the room. The children, none older than eight, screamed his name and danced around his legs. The tallest, a girl, pulled on his bag and reached in to pull out a box that Jasmine recognized. Aladdin had bought it at one of the markets they had visited on their trip. It held a deep red ruby surrounded by plain silver and smaller red gems. She had thought he bought it for her even though it wasn’t to her tastes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Judging from its presence here in his bag, he had different intentions for it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s this?” the girl asked, looking for the hinge that would open the box.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A present for Madam,” he told her. She shoved it back into his bag quickly as a blush rose up her neck and spread across her neck.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh. Sorry,” she said awkwardly before raising her arms to him. He picked her up and swung her in a circle, careful not to knock the other two on the head. Of course, as children everywhere are want to do, the two younger boys wanted a turn being spun. Aladdin looked a little grey when he put down the final child and grinned when they started to shout ‘Again! Again!’. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t think so. I'm going to be late,” he told them regretfully. They shrugged and scampered back into the depths of the house. The women around him all smiled indulgently at him. He was putting his shirt back to rights when shriek echoed through the house and the pounding of bare feet announced the arrival of a new woman. She slammed into his side, nearly lifting him off his feet. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jasmine bit her lip as this woman crossed the unspoken like that at least the others had acknowledged. When she took a step back from her captive, however, Jasmine could see that she wasn’t dressed like the other women in the room. She wasn’t much younger than them but her shawl was thicker and her clothes covered her whole body. She looked… respectable.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Aladdin had wrapped his arm around her shoulder, his expression somewhere between joyful and sorrowful.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why were you gone so long?!” the girl exclaimed, punching his shoulder as she stepped back out of his embrace. His expression gave way to laughter.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I was busy,” he told her. She rolled her eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Just because you have another woman in your life doesn't mean you can just forget me,” she scolded, sounding a little more hurt than she probably intended. He quickly grabbed her hand and kissed her knuckles.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No one will ever take your place in my life or my heart, Shiri,” he promised. She gripped his hand tighter and turned to pull him up the stairs that Jasmine hadn’t noticed until that moment. She climbed up the wall, using the ascending levels like narrow steps until she could watch through them into the upper floor. It was set up like most homes in the city, with bed mats in the corner and a kitchen setup on the other side. A low table was set with a delicious looking meal that made Jasmine's stomach growl, reminding her she had skipped dinner for this escapade. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Aladdin put the basket he carried on the counter next to the large stove and smelled the contents of the large pot bubbling there. He looked back at Shiri with a surprised expression on his face. She shrugged. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mama knows it’s your favorite,” she told him. He just shook his head and focused back on the girl. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How has school been?” He asked. She shrugged. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Boring when you aren’t falling through the door to distract the teacher,” she chuckled and he blushed. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That only happened once,” he protested. She giggled. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It was still the best day… other than when Prince Ali came in! We got to use the dance she had been teaching us,” Shiri gushed. Aladdin blushed at that. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sounds like fun,” he told her. She nodded. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You even waved to me. All the girls couldn’t stop talking about it,” she told him and he choked, losing his balance literally and stumbling to the side slightly. She covered a giggle as he straightened. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You knew?!” He exclaimed. The glare she sent him was mocking and insulted at the same time. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’d recognize you anywhere, big brother,” she told him. Jasmine bit her lip to restrain her gasp of surprise. He said he was an orphan…</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How am I not surprised?” he laughed, ears still red. They were interrupted by a third woman entering the room from a curtain at the far end by the kitchen. Jasmine recognized her vaguely. The woman from the market who had blocked the guards on the steps.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ah you’ve finally decided to visit,” she half scolded when she saw Aladdin standing there by the stove. He smiled and gave her a slight bow.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s good to see you again... Madam,” he said meekly. She sniffed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shiri missed you. You were gone too long,” she told him as she scooped the contents of the pot into a bowl and handed it to him. He took it automatically and placed it on the table. Shiri, for her part, glared at the woman Jasmine assumed was her mother.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You missed him too, Amma,” she accused. The woman’s stiff shoulders drooped slightly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That I did. Come here, you rogue,” she ordered. He stepped right her arms and nearly folded in half to hug her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I missed you too, Amma,” he whispered. She wheezed in a way that could only be a laugh.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh I’m sure you were thinking about your old Amma when you were out there on your honeymoon,” she teased. He blushed a deep red and choked which made Shiri bust out laughing. The tension in the room dissolved and they all sat down to eat around the low table. Aladdin was regalling them with tales of his journey abroad when a hand clamped over Jasmine’s mouth, stifling her sudden shriek of surprise. Aladdin’s eyes flew up to the window and made contact with hers in that moment before she was dragged away. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Down the wall and into the lower floor of the brothel, someone pulled her though she couldn’t see their face. The hands released her so abruptly that she fell to the carpeted floor. She looked up into seething eyes behind sheerly veiled faces. All the women were on their feet and glaring down at her. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Who are you?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do you think you’re doing?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Did Ishmael send you to spy on Madam?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ll regret this.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Girls! Girls! Girls!” Madam called from the top stair. She blocked both Aladdin and Shiri from view and Jasmine turned to stare up at the woman. She was imposing in a maroon shawl with her hair flared out around her head like a halo. Jasmine tried to rise but a hiss from beside her made her freeze. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not another move, dearie, or it will be your last,” the woman Jasmine had seen crashing the party now held a knife to her throat. As Madam began to descend the stairs, Aladdin and Shiri were able to get their first look at the scene below. Jasmine could just see him out of the corner of her eye. He had gone impossibly pale before leaping from the landing down to the ground floor. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mira, let her go!” He exclaimed, pulling the woman and the knife away from her. Jasmine smiled up at him with a mixture of gratefulness and sheepishness. Above them, Shiri gasped. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The princess,” she breathed and fell to her knees. The other women retreated quickly, holding onto each other in fear. Except Mira, who was still glaring at Aladdin. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She was spying on you,” the woman insisted. Aladdin shook his head gently and pried the knife from her grip. Jasmine notice that Shiri had risen to creep down the stairs to stand beside her mother.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She wouldn’t hurt us. I promise,” he told her comfortingly. Finally, Mira looked away, apparently giving in. The Madam cleared her throat, drawing the attention away from Mira and to herself. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How may we serve you, princess?” She asked with a deep bow. Jasmine stood as she tried to recover her scattered nerves. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I was simply trying to understand where my husband was sneaking off to the day after we returned from our honeymoon,” she answered stiffly. Both Madam and Shiri smacked Aladdin in the back of the head from opposite sides. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You did not tell her where you were going?” Madam accused. Aladdin shrugged. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I didn’t want to complicate things!” He exclaimed. Shiri rolled her eyes to Jasmine. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He can be rather thick sometimes,” she stage whispered. Jasmine giggled and nodded. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sometimes,” she agreed before turning her eyes back to Aladdin. He looked as uncomfortable as the day Baba had given him her hand after he revealed Jafar for the snake he was. That same insecure expression of trying to steal another life…</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Perhaps we should talk upstairs,” Madam put in diplomatically. Aladdin nodded at once and held out his hand to help Jasmine mount the stairs to the room with the table still set for dinner. “Shiri, another setting.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The girl hurried to pull out another table setting for Jasmine that she placed before the princess as Aladdin helped her to settle at an open section. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Now, Aladdin, would you like to explain yourself to your wife or will I have to?” Madam demanded when they were all seated. Aladdin ducked his head to avoid their eyes which made the woman sigh in exasperation. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Amma-“ Shiri tried but Madam held up a hand to stop her. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I have known Aladdin since the moment he was born,” Madam began. “His mother was my best friend and a good woman. We both worked in this self same brothel when it was owned by a man named Jamal. Ashaki was as kind as she was beautiful. She was much desired by the customers but treated everyone with dignity. I can’t count the number of beggars she fed while we shopped in the market.” The look on Madam’s face was blissful, memories of a time long past filling her mind and erasing years from her face. Aladdin held Jasmine’s hand tight in his own. She held on right back. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ashaki was meant for more than this life and she met a dashing young man one day who quite swept her off her feet. He was tall and charming and just as kind as she was. She wouldn’t tell me his name but I think he may have been a nobleman. Anyway, she became pregnant with Aladdin by him and soon gave birth to the man sitting beside you. I don’t believe she ever told him about Aladdin for fear he would react badly. When I asked her once where he had thought she had gone since she started to show, she told me he had gone on a sea voyage and would be gone for many months. Anyway, when Aladdin was about 4 years old and she was working as usual, she fell ill. Very ill. We still aren’t sure what it was that took her. But within a week she was gone.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m so sorry,” Jasmine breathed. Aladdin shrugged as he pulled his knees up close to his chest. Shiri scooted over time wrap her arm around his shoulders. He tried to muster a smile for the girl and managed a kind of grimace. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It was terrible. Everyone who knew her mourned for months after. But like any child born out of wedlock, they didn’t know about young Aladdin then. I convinced Jamal to keep him around to run errands and clean the house in exchange for a place to sleep. I fed him as best I could but my tips hadn’t been near what Ashaki had been making but we got by. And then I got pregnant with Shiri here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I was 9 by then and able to fend for myself,” Aladdin took over the story. “Jamal was becoming more and more frustrated by me so I left. Started stealing and making my own way. But Amma would always give me a bite of something if I showed up after a few too many days of bad luck,” he told them. Madam nodded sadly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wish I could have done more for you. By the time I was making the money to support two, you were a young man and established in your freedom. I couldn’t have reined you in if I had tried,” the woman explained. He shrugged with a little smile. “By that time Jamal was getting on in years and gave the brothel over to me since I had been helping with the books for years. So now I’m a business owner who can send her daughter to school and you are prince consort. I think we’ve rather we’ll for ourselves,” she chuckled. He nodded. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think so,” Aladdin grinned, picking up his usual good humor again as the mood of the room improved. Jasmine didn’t say anything as she processed all of this new information. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So… why didn’t you invite them to the wedding?” She asked finally, as confused as ever. All three burst into laughter but stopped when they realized she was entirely serious. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Princess, we are not palace people. Our work is on the very fringes of society. I send my daughter to school so she can separate herself from this life. The owner of a brothel at the royal wedding? It cannot happen,” Madam told her. Jasmine shook her head. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And a woman can never be sultan,” she snapped. Aladdin’s eyes widened at her. No one talked back to Madam. No one. Except the princess and sultan-to-be, apparently. “If I had known you were Aladdin’s family, I would have fought the guards myself for your right to be present.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She would too,” Aladdin murmured to Shiri. “She has a stubborn streak.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why didn’t you tell me?” Jasmine demanded. He shrugged without looking her in the eye. Shiri nudged him playfully.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He’s always been closed mouthed about stuff. Keeping secrets keeps you alive,” she said. He grinned at her and mussed her veil, making her shriek and bat him away.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I taught you well,” he teased with a smile and an exaggerated puff of his chest for dramatic effect.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sorry I crashed your family dinner,” Jasmine said after a few moments thought. Madam shook her head, making the bells on her shawl jingle.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You are family, are you not? You are always welcome at our table. Have you eaten?” she asked. Jasmine shook her head vigorously. Madam served her the largest portion Jasmine had seen since her wedding (it had been on Kahil’s plate. He still hadn’t gotten over the flavors in non-magically made food) and after waiting politely for her host, dug in with a will. Everyone fell silent as they enjoyed their meal, Aladdin and Jasmine grabbing each other’s hand intermittently throughout the evening.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>After the food was gone and the dishes cleaned, a process Jasmine helped with for the first time in her life, Aladdin pulled out his bag. He handed a package to Shiri and the box Jasmine had seen earlier to Madam. She grinned now, knowing that the necklace that he had picked may not suit her at all but it was perfect for the Madam. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Shiri shrieked with joy as she unwrapped the gorgeous deep blue scarf Jasmine recognized from a stall that Aladdin spent far more time at in Shirobad than she had. The girl twirled giddily with the feather light cloth held high over her head, flickering in the air like a cloud of butterflies. Jasmine looked back at Madam and the smile fell from her face. There were tears on the woman’s face as she shook her head. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I can’t accept this,” she whispered, shoving the box back into Aladdin’s hands. He only smiled and wrapped the woman in a hug.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I would have died many times over if it wasn’t for you, Amma. You saved me when the guards nearly kicked in my skull when I was 12 or during that drought when I was 16. You gave me something to eat when I hadn’t eaten in days. I can never repay you for all you have done for me,” he whispered in a voice that Jasmine thought she wasn’t supposed to hear. The reality of Aladdin’s life before she met him crashed over her like another wave of the ocean at high tide. It happened sometimes, when he talked about his past. She sometimes forgot just what his life had entailed and how it might affect a person.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Madam wrapped her arms around him, pulling him close and squeezing so tight his shirt began to wrinkle under her grip. Shiri stood close to Jasmine and the princess wrapped her arm around the girl’s shoulder instinctively. She may not have had many friends growing up but Dalia had socialized her better than she could have ever hoped. Little things such as touch and casual conversation with someone without noble blood wasn’t as foreign to her as it seemed to be to other members of the nobility. Shiri leaned into the touch as she wrapped her arm around Jasmine’s waist to return the hug.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Bah, look at us!” Madam exclaimed after another quiet moment. She stepped back from Aladdin to properly inspect the necklace. “Blubbering like seals beached on rock.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They all burst out laughing at the mental image as the tension eased from the room to leave something warmer and friendlier than before. Aladdin helped Madam to put the necklace on. She used a mirror by the door to inspect herself with a smug sort of confidence. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You do know how to pick good jewelry after all,” Shiri teased. He rolled his eyes at her teasing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So do you like it?” he asked her, nodding towards the shawl. She beamed up at him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I love it! It's my favorite color!” she declared, wrapping it around her head and twisting so it half hid her face. Jasmine looked about the room and noticed a stack of books sitting back in the corner behind the table.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What are those?” she asked. Shiri shrugged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My school books. Amma asked me to take them off the table for dinner,” she explained. Jasmine went over and pulled them out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I have read some of these. Which one is your favorite?” she asked. Shiri joined and soon both women were deep in conversation about the books they had read and their favorite authors. Aladdin and Madam sat apart, drinking tea and discussing the goings on of the city. Aladdin had an inkling that he may soon become the official Vizier… which was also a term for spy master. He needed to keep up with what exactly was happening in the city if Jasmine was to rule successfully.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Far too soon the city bells tolled an hour far later than either of them had planned to be out, not that Jasmine had truly planned this outing. They said their goodbyes and promised to come back soon. Jasmine had a list of books she wanted to show Shiri and Aladdin knew there would always be more gossip to glean. They walked back to the palace hand in hand, Aladdin’s new clothes and Jasmine’s veil protecting them from recognition. Abu had long since disappeared back to the palace, having taken his meal quickly and scurried out of reach of Shiri, who loved to play with his long tail.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jasmine worried, as they approached the walls, that they would have trouble sneaking in. Aladdin showed her the spot where they could slip in through an unused washout tunnel. A sturdy grate barred their way and she glared at him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t suppose you can pick that?” she asked, pointing to a small gate in the grate with a keyhole. He smiled and pulled a key from his belt.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t need to,” he told her as he unlocked the gate and bowed her through. “I found this while exploring my options. It had obviously been forgotten and the metal had rusted almost to nothing. I was able to tear it away with my hands,” he told her. She frowned at such an obvious weakness in her palace’s defences.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So you had a door installed?” she asked. He shrugged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I told Hakim about it. He said that the grate was secure. I bet him a key to the replacement gate if I could walk from one end of the tunnel to the other. Obviously, I won. I think he was actually a little impressed,” Aladdin whispered as they crept through the quiet palace, treading carefully to avoid detection. While Jasmine had banished many of the guards to the outer walls and decreased the number of men on each shift, there were still night watchmen who patrolled the halls. Even she had seen that such precautions were expected in a palace. So they slipped by the guards and made it safely back to their suite with no one the wiser…</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Until they opened the door. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hakim and her father stood there, looking absolutely furious. Aladdin and Jasmine glanced at each other before starting to speak at the same time,</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Baba, I-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Your Majesty-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hamed held up his hand, effectively silencing both of them. Hakim said nothing but his glare could have peeled the paint from the fresco behind them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I trust you both had an enjoyable evening,” Hamed said, his voice so pleasant that one would not even know he was angry until they looked into his eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Baba-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A pleasant evening galavanting about the streets with no guard, no protection. And spending time in a… brothel?” Hamed said the last word softly, like a curse. Aladdin’s head flew up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You had me followed?” he accused. Hamed shrugged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I have you both followed. You have a tendency to sneak away when you think no one is watching. As proven by this evening’s escapade,” he said, still calm. Aladdin flinched. “Why you went there is beyond me… especially since you stayed quite late. Together.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We…” Aladdin faltered, not sure what to say. What was worse? Buying the services the sultan assumed they were or admitting that the people there were as close as family?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We were not there to do business, Baba. We were there on a personal matter,” Jasmine said, looking at Aladdin for permission. He nodded as his shoulders slumped. “A family matter.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Family?” The sultan and hakim stared at Aladdin for a long moment. “I see.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“After my mother died, Madam was the only one to think that maybe her four year old son might need someone to look after him. She obviously couldn’t take care of me entirely but she got me a job and made sure I didn’t starve to death.” Aladdin admitted quietly. Hamed’s face softened as he realized what was going on here.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You were sneaking out to see your family,” the sultan surmised. Aladdin nodded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And I was sneaking out to find out where he was sneaking off to,” Jasmine chimed in. Hamed’s face darkened again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You do not have his skills at remaining undetected and unharmed!” he barked. Then he sighed, covering his face with one hand. “Jasmine, I know you are a strong and capable woman. But that doesn’t mean that the world isn’t a dangerous place. You must be careful.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know, Baba. It was a foolish thing to do. I was just so angry at the idea of him sneaking out to meet this ‘Madam’,” she tried but Aladdin rounded on her with wide eyes. She could read those eyes as clearly as if he had written out his feelings in black ink. “I heard you talking with Mira at the party before our honeymoon.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh,” all of his bluster fell away as he blushed. “She is… like a terrifying older sister. And she is also Madam’s right hand woman. I couldn’t have refused even if I wanted to, which I didn’t”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh I know. That knife was no joke,” Jasmine chuckled before remembering who exactly was in the room. She winced.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Knife?” the sultan choked. His eyes bulged out of their sockets just a little. Jasmine shrugged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s no more than Hakim would have done if someone were caught spying on us during a family meal. Honestly, she showed a lot of restraint. I don’t think our guards would stop at just a threat,” she said casually, desperately trying to repair her blunder.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So… you snuck out for a family dinner at the brothel and snuck in late because you…” Hamed let the thought rest as Jasmine shrugged again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shiri and I got carried away talking about books and her school while Aladdin and Madam chatted about the city,” she told them honestly. Hamed walked over to one of her cloth covered stools and sat down.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wouldn't it have just been easier to have a family dinner here?” his voice sounded pleading, as if he were begging them both to use their last brain cells to be sensible. It was Aladdin’s turn to shrug.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They wouldn’t be comfortable here. And honestly, I needed a break. I’m not used to all this finery yet,” he admitted. Hamed actually nodded in understanding.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Next time, try?” he asked. Aladdin nodded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I will send a message to them with the invitation. I’m sure Shiri would love to see your library in person, Jasmine,” he suggested when it looked like she was about to protest. The thought shut her up quickly. Finally, she nodded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They are your family, Aladdin. It is up to you. And when we go back, because we will, we will take a few plain clothes guards who can mingle while keeping watch so no one is the wiser that we are about and yet we have protection incase of an emergency. Will that suffice, Baba?” she asked. Hamed let out a sigh of relief.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think that will do quite well, my dear,” he replied with a small smile on his lips. He rose and kissed her forehead before leaving the room. Hakim hesitated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s late but tomorrow, would you have time for a meeting mid morning?” Aladdin asked the man. Hakim just stared at him. “I have a few pieces of information I wish to discuss with you. I believe they will be important in the defence of the kingdom.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As you wish, Vizier,” Hakim agreed, bowing slightly before taking his leave. Aladdin was grinning so wide that Jasmine was sure his face would break.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do you think?” he asked nearly vibrating on the spot with sudden nervous energy.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think that I haven’t had the chance to name you vizier yet and you are already doing a fantastic job,” she told him, smiling up into his wide, sparkling eyes. He whooped and picked her up by the waist, spinning her in a circle before pulling her down into a passionate kiss. She sank into him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. They stumbled back towards the bed, tumbling onto the soft sheets and fluffy pillows. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It took persuading, lots of persuading, but finally </span>
  <span>Anadil </span>
  <span>(though she had insisted that Jasmine use Amma, as she was practically a daughter now. Jasmine definitely didn’t shed tears over this. Totally not. She just wasn’t used to the dust from the market they were shopping in covertly. Obviously) finally agreed to make the trek up to the palace for dinner. Shiri was plainly excited but trying hard to hide it when Aladdin and Jasmine, along with Hamed and their personal guard, received them in the entrance hall. Amma looked as if she were a mouse entering a den of cats. Behind them, Mira entered with a smile so razor sharp that Aladdin felt a chill down his spine. She may not look like much but he knew she would give the guards a run for their money. He didn’t think he’d mention that any time soon. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Welcome, we are honored to receive you in our home,” Hamed greeted. He was still the Sultan so it was still technically his palace. The three guests bowed low.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We are honored by your invitations,” Anadil replied carefully, though with the hint of snark that made Aladdin want to laugh aloud. He simply grinned and crossed the room to take her hands in his, prompting her to rise.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It's good to see you again, Amma,” he said softly. She kissed his cheek.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re getting fat,” she told him. This time he did burst out laughing. Her eyes twinkled with mischief as Shiri groaned. “It's a good look on you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you. I’ve been eating almost as well as I do at your table,” he murmured to her. She pinched his cheek before accepting his arm as he escorted her up to Jasmine. Shiri grabbed onto his other arm. When they reached Jasmine, both women curtseyed low. Jasmine inclined her head in a high sign of respect that colored both of their cheeks a deep red.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m so glad to be hosting you at long last,” she says with more feeling than the Sultan to be would usually use for visitors. Anadil tilted her head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I am excited to see what your staff has prepared for us,” she answered politely. Jasmine’s grin was so large that she was positively beaming.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not my staff, Amma. Aladdin and I prepared every dish ourselves,” she announced. Aladdin saw Hamed’s eyebrows rise while Hakim covered a cough.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The staff instructed us so we don’t accidentally poison ourselves,” Aladdin cut in. All the elders relaxed and Shiri bit her shawl to hold the giggles at bay. There were two suspect pink spots high on Jasmine’s cheeks as she continued.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Kira from the kitchen was a great help to us,” she admitted. Hamed hid a smile behind his beard and held his arm out to his daughter.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then I am anxious to see what you have prepared for us,” he said with more than a hint of pride. She took his arm and escorted him up the stairs, leading the way. She turned to Rajah as she crested the top step.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Rajah, would you be kind enough to escort Shiri to dinner?” she asked. The cat, as always far more intelligent than most beasts, nodded and trotted down the stairs to nudge Shiri forward like a kitten he had misplaced. She shrieked before sighing in awe as she ran her hand over his broad head. He purred slightly and began to pad back up the stairs with the delighted girl at his side. Hakim and Mira brought up the rear, nodding to each other professionally before returning their attention to their charges.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The meal wasn’t poisoned. Kira had been strict as Aladdin and Jasmine had struggled to produce a meal that would pass her painstaking inspection. They beamed with the pride of young adults finally joining the ranks of the elders as everyone praised the meal with genuine enthusiasm. From the corner, Kira watched them before bringing out dessert with a few more of the serving people. Jasmine beckoned to her and stood when the woman reached her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Everyone, I’d like to make a toast to Kira, without whom this meal would not have been possible,” she announced. Everyone raised their glasses. Kira’s eyes were wet as she tried to reign in her emotions.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you, Highness. It was a pleasure to have you both in my kitchen,” she replied as tactfully as she knew how. Jasmine sat as the woman hurried out of the room to hide her blushes. She even forgot to leave Jasmine’s dessert. Jasmine chuckled and sent one of the other girls after the head cook. The girl returned with a barely hidden smile and the dish, bearing an apology from a mortified Kira. Jasmine sent a message back to soothe the woman and apologize for putting her on the spot like that.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>From across the table, Amma smiled indulgently as she watched Aladdin and Shiri eat their fill. It had been years since her daughter had been in danger of going hungry but Aladdin had only been off the streets for a few months. He had quite a bit of catching up to do. Meals like this, with the roast lamb, pita, dalmas, stuffed eggplant, and kunafa for dessert, were doing wonders for his weight.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Still, she could tell there were also psychological scars to heal from so long on his own. Poverty had etched habits into his subconscious that would not be healed by a few good meals and a soft bed. She watched as he deftly slipped a few apples off the table as well as pieces of bread. She was sure that in the lining of his fine new clothes was a sturdily hand sewn pocket that wouldn’t let its contents seep into the fabric of the rich silk. His eyes met hers as his hand disappeared below the table but she just winked at him. His shoulders loosened a little, barely perceptible from across the table. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Once the meal was complete, Jasmine excused herself and Shiri to show the younger woman her library. She was becoming quite the aunt and seemed to be loving every second of it. Hakim went to follow them but was stopped by a raised hand from Hamed. He returned to his place at the Sultan’s elbow. Hamed excused himself, saying he had a few things to attend to. He did ask for Anadil and Shiri to stay for evening tea. Anadil bowed courteously and accepted, knowing there wasn’t any way she could politely refuse with Shiri off galavanting with the Crown Princess. Aladdin rose last and walked around the table to offer his arm to her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think you will like my new office,” he said in lieu of an actual invitation. She accepted his arm and they walked through the decadent palace in silence. A few times she stopped to admire a tapestry or vase but they steadily made their way all the way up to the tower. She sighed with admiration at the view from the tall window on the lower level that looked out over the sea. A sturdy railing covered with a brightly colored rug stood between her and the drop down to the ocean. She leaned on it to breathe in the brine of the salt air.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Be careful!” Aladdin called, his voice a little choked. She chuckled as she backed away.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do you not trust your barrier?” she teased. Her grin died at the grim look on his face as he shrugged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I just wouldn’t want you to fall,” he told her in a short, clipped tone she’d never heard him use.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Aladdin-” she started but he turned away from her to climb the stairs up to the workroom part of the tower.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s nothing,” he snapped. She sighed and put her hands on her hips. He glanced back at her and seemed to shrink a little. Anadil took a moment to sit on the plush couch that sat in the corner, facing the city instead of the sea. After a few minutes, Aladdin joined her. She leaned in to finally get a good look at him. His cheeks were fuller but the bags under his eyes were heavier and puffier. There was a light stubble on his chin and he looked absolutely exhausted.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why haven’t you been sleeping?” she asked softly. His eyes flicked up to meet hers before back down his hands. He leaned farther over his forearms as they braced against his knees.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I- I’ve been-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You haven’t been sleeping fine, ibnay,” she almost whispered. Carefully, she laid a gentle hand on his shoulder. He flinched a little before leaning into the touch. The shudder beneath her fingertips shocked her almost as much as the tear she saw streaking down his cheek.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I haven’t slept in days,” he admitted like a dark secret. His hands came up to cover his face. She pulled him close, cuddling him in her arms the way she used to when he was young and missing his mother so badly his heart felt as if it were cracking under the pressure of the pain. He hadn’t let himself accept such comfort from her in years but something had changed in her hardened street thief. He buried his face in her shoulder, soaking her kaftan with tears he desperately tried to hide. She soothed him as best she could, speaking softly and encouragingly as she rubbed his back and held him close.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>After a few minutes, he pulled back, clearly not cried out but trying to hide it anyway. She tutted him as she wiped his face with her shawl.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s this about?” she asked softly. He tried to shake his head but she grasped his chin and made him look up at her. Looking into her eyes, he knew he couldn’t avoid this one.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I have… nightmares. Bad ones,” he whispered. She let his chin go and he looked back down at the ground.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“About what?” she prodded after another stretch of silence. He shrugged. With a snap she opened a fan she kept in one of her pockets. Despite his distress, Aladdin chuckled at the familiar sound of Amma losing her patience.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I… a few months ago, right before Jasmine was named the next sultan, there was some trouble here at the palace. I had convinced everyone I was Prince Ali with the help of a genie. Except for the royal vizier. He figured it out and had his goons grab me. He tried to get me to confess but I wouldn’t give him anything. So he… pushed me out that window while I was tied to a chair,” he pointed at the window she had leaned out of not 20 minutes before. She gasped but silenced herself as he continued. “I drowned, I think. Genie saved me but he said it took me a bit to wake up and I coughed up a lot of water. And then a few hours later, Jafar used magic to send me ‘to the end of the earth’... which is ridiculously cold. Frozen water everywhere. The wind felt like it blew right through me and I nearly died from that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was wringing his hands so bad that she could see the white marks on them from where he squeezed out the blood. She took them in hers, pulling him back to face her. He collapsed back into her arms and continued to talk into her shoulder in a slightly muffled voice.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And right after Carpet saved me and brought me back here, I was chased by a giant parrot through the streets and then watched as Jafar nearly killed everyone in the palace and me. I can still feel his magic choking me like a metal hand around my neck,” he finished, utterly exhausted by his admissions and lack of sleep. Amma wrapped him more securely in her arms, unable to form words that would comfort him in the face of such trauma. Finally, she said,</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You are truly the bravest man I know,” she told him softly. He tried to pull away, shaking his head, but she held on. “You are brave because you were terrified and you still came back to save your love and her family. You came back for them despite the danger and you saved the entire kingdom. But that doesn’t mean that such events don’t leave scars.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I just feel so stupid. I can’t sleep. Ever since Jasmine asked me to leave me knives in the trunk instead of sleeping with them in their scabbards, I haven’t been able to sleep so much as an hour with her. I catch cat naps up here sometimes but then I see the window and that doesn’t help. Putting up the rug did wonders though.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then I think you need to have a conversation with your wife about your sleeping arrangements,” Amma advised sagely. He nodded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think I will,” he conceded with a sigh. Amma smiled at him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Quite mature. So you took over the old vizier’s office?” she asked, hoping to steer the conversation to something less heavy. He brightened.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, I’ve done some redecorating but Jafar liked his toys so it was a good spot. And I’ve always had a thing for towers,” he joked, sitting up fully. She giggled a little.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The understatement of the century, my boy,” she teased. He couldn’t help but laugh, knowing she was right. She listened as he explained the changes he had made, some of the cursed objects he had removed in favor of mundane things like globes and books about a myriad of subjects that Jasmine had suggested. He told her how Jasmine had caught on to the fact that his reading skills were basically nil and how she had been teaching him. He was so proud of himself for finishing his first book all by himself that Anadil thought he might transform into a peacock on the spot. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Finally, they made their way back down the terrace where the sultan sat looking out over the city, surrounded by a table filled with delicious morsels while a servant poured tea. Anadil found herself seated directly next to the older man on a plush pillow of deep purple. Aladdin sat next to her, still a little wobbly on his feet. She bowed to the sultan again, as she had done when she had entered the room. He returned a nod and handed her a cup of steaming tea. It helped to ward off the chill of the night air that blew in from the sea.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How do you find our palace?” he asked in lieu of the silence that fell. She smiled up at him with a hint of the sultry look she used to give customers.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Extravagantly beautiful, my sultan,” she praised. Aladdin wanted to chuckle. He knew she thought it was ridiculously over done but that she would never say as much. Hamed’s eyes twinkled as he looked at her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It is a little much, you’re right,” he admitted. The flush on her cheeks told both men that she hadn’t intended for him to realize the almost backhanded compliment.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I am simply unused to such finery, Your Majesty. It is beautiful,” she said more sincerely. He shrugged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I find most of it to be quite gaudy but they are heirlooms or gifts or just ‘things a palace should have’. I think I may have let my art curator get away with a little too much lately but he seems to enjoy himself so I let it slide. As long as it doesn’t bite into the treasury too much,” Hamed whispered conspiratorially. Before Anadil could balk at the idea of her tax dollars being used to such frivolity he continued. “And by showcasing such extravagance, the gifts from our neighbors have almost tripled in an effort to ‘outdo’ us. Honestly, we’ve probably doubled our treasury on those gifts from Jasmine’s suitors alone.” he told them. Anadil smiled up with a new respect in her eyes for the old man. He nodded slightly, recognizing the look, and the air around the group relaxed even further.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jasmine and Shiri walked in soon after, both of them laden down with books and talking animatedly. Aladdin lit up at the sight of his wife looking so happy. Anadil noticed that Hamed was watching him with a critical eye. Taking a chance, she leaned over and asked,</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Would you mind showing me your beautiful gardens, my Sultan? I believe I have not had the chance to properly admire them,” she hinted softly. He nodded, not looking at all fooled by her reason. He extended his hand to her and helped her to her feet. Aladdin was so enamoured by his wife he barely noticed the other two leaving. Jasmine did but she wasn’t about to draw attention to the retreating pair.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I truly am glad you finally accepted our offer to visit,” Hamed said when they were well out of earshot of the youngins. Anadil chuckled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I thought it was a joke but Aladdin and Jasmine are quite persistent,” she admitted. He chuckled as well.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Now, I believe you have something you want to discuss,” Hamed suggested.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I do,” Anadil didn’t even try to deflect this time. “Aladdin is not my son by blood. But I am the closest he’s had to a parent since the death of his mother. And I am worried for him.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As am I. He seems to be adjusting to palace and consort life but I can tell that he does struggle at times,” Hamed agreed immediately. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He mentioned that there were some traumatic events leading up to his and Jasmine’s engagement,” she admitted delicately, looking over at the flowers that lined the path rather than directly at her companion. The arm in hers tensed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He isn’t wrong. We all bear the scars of that day. Him more than the rest of us,” Hamed admitted. “My vizier turned out to be a deceitful man who nearly destroyed us. Without Aladdin, we would have been ruined entirely. Our lives, our country. We will be forever in his debt.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A high honor,” she murmured, thinking hard. “And Jasmine is aware of these scars?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I believe so. I haven’t mentioned anything to her but I’m sure she’s noticed. I am trying to walk the fine balance between father and sultan.” Hamed said with no small amount of frustration.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It sounds as if you are doing a good job. I will mention something to Jasmine. Hopefully that will spur a conversation between them and they can heal together. And they know that we are both here for them,” Anadil said at last. Hamed nodded solemnly, lost in his own thoughts. As they returned to the table, they found that their tea had been freshly poured. Shiri was still admiring the books Jasmine had insisted she take with her and had to be persuaded into putting them down in order to try the tea and tiny desserts set about for them. Jasmine and Aladdin both looked exhausted from playing host. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Anadil admitted fatigue not long after they finished the tea. Everyone stood to exchange farewells. The older woman took Jasmine’s arm in a vice-like grip and the young woman obligingly walked her out, as was expected from a young person to an elder. Hamed and Shiri walked a bit behind them with Aladdin to keep him occupied as the women talked. Anadil didn’t have to say much. Jasmine was already well aware of the problem but hearing that Aladdin had broken down that evening was exactly the push she needed to confront him. They parted with a kiss on the cheek and knowing look. Aladdin gave her another warm hug before allowing them to depart under the eye of Mira and a few plain clothes guards who had been assigned to make sure Aladdin’s family returned home safely.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jasmine was FRUSTRATED. The evening had gone so well with the food and everyone getting along amicably. Anadil had been approving or maybe even a little impressed by the splendor and even more impressed by the intimacy of the setting. Shiri had been ecstatic. Her father had been charming. Everything had been perfect.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And then Anadil told her that Aladdin had a breakdown while she and Shiri were in the library. She had known he was getting worse. Had known that he wasn’t sleeping well since she had asked him to put the knives away. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>But this? </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She hadn’t expected this. Maybe she should have. After all, she knew what had happened with Jafar and the ocean. She knew about the cold place he had been sent to and remembered the feel of the magic gripping her skin like a vice. All of those things put together would obviously upset a person for a long period of time.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She had failed her husband. It was as simple as that. She had failed to protect him from being hurt and to support him after the fact.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>So yeah, she was frustrated with herself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Not with Aladdin. No, no not with the love of her life. Not the man she admired and respected beyond doubt and reason.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>When she entered the bedroom, she found Aladdin already abed. He lay with his back to the door. Apparently he had decided to turn in early. Usually they sat up talking and cuddling on the terrace. It would have been the perfect opportunity to have the conversation she desperately needed to have with him. But she wouldn’t begrudge him the sleep he obviously needed. They could talk tomorrow.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As she worked to undress herself without her handmaidens’ help since she had dismissed the girls earlier, she heard a disturbance from the bedroom. Shedding the rest of her layers quickly and throwing on a robe over her light blouse and </span>
  <em>
    <span>shalvar</span>
  </em>
  <span>, she rushed to see what was going on. Instead of finding an assassin or the guards piling into the room, she found only Aladdin struggling on the bed against an unseen foe. The blankets twisted around his feet and chest. His face was sweat soaked, shining in the flickering light from her lamp. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Her heart constricted painfully as he writhed without making a sound aside from a few small gasps. She set the lamp aside and hovered above him, unsure how to help. She’d heard of people having nightmares and reacting violently when woken. Should she touch him? Throw water on him? </span>
</p><p>
  <span>No, not that last one. He probably already had nightmares of drowning. Water would probably just make everything worse. But what…</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A few words slipped past his clenched teeth that shook her to her core.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, please no, not her. Don’t. Please,” he pleaded pitifully. Groaning in pain, he turned over again as if he were trying to throw off an attacker. “Not the cold. I can’t- I’m sorry. I’ll go please don’t.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She </span>
  <em>
    <span>had</span>
  </em>
  <span> to wake him. Whatever he was enduring in his dreams was causing him extreme distress. He was her husband and it was her job to protect him even if it was from his own mind.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kneeling down, she reached out hesitantly and gently touched his arm. He flinched and scrambled away from her touch, muttering terrified gibberish. She paused and then she had an idea. Softly, she started to sing,</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>When the shadows unfold</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>When the sun hides its gold</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>When the wind and the cold come calling</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>When the path isn't clear</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>And the stars disappear</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>As an endless midnight's falling”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mama,” Aladdin gasped softly, reaching out desperately toward her voice. She caught him before he fell off of the bed, still half asleep and bleary.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, love, it's me. It's Jasmine. I need you to wake up now. It was all a dream. I’m here,” she replied in a voice that trembled so badly that her lower lip started to shake. He blinked up at her and she could tell the moment he recognized her. A blush rushed up his neck and into his cheeks, so dark that it showed through his tanned olive skin. He scrambled back to put space between them, bringing his knees up defensively and wrapping his arms around them. He looked small and disoriented in the middle of the huge mattress, surrounded by the plush blankets and pillows. She moved slowly as she climbed up to sit cross legged in front of him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jasmine wanted to reach out but she could tell that her touch wasn’t welcome just then. He kept his eyes trained on his knees as he tried to slow his breathing. After a few minutes, she heard him sigh heavily and looked up at him again from where her own eyes had been fixed on the bedding.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sorry,” he coughed hoarsely. She flinched at the raw raspiness of his voice.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You have nothing to be sorry for. Can I get you some water?” she asked. He shook his head, letting his fringe flop over his forehead and into his eyes. She pursed her lips and fetched the cup and pitcher anyway. He didn’t look up as he felt the mattress shift or dip when she returned to sit a little closer to him. “Please, drink something. You sound dry as the palace wall at noon.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn’t bother to protest again and took the proffered cup shakily. It trembled in his hand but she’d only filled it halfway up so the liquid wouldn't spill. He pulled it close to his body and sipped carefully from the gilded rim. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>After a few minutes, he took a deep breath and handed her back the cup. She started to speak but he cut her off.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sorry,” he told her softly. She tried to protest but he shook his head. “I haven’t been this vocal during nightmares since I was a kid.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Aladdin, I don’t care that you’re vocal during nightmares. I care that you </span>
  <em>
    <span>have</span>
  </em>
  <span> nightmares,” she tried to explain but from the way he flinched, she didn’t think she had quite hit her mark. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I… can’t control them. I can’t stop them,” he said it like a shameful secret. She started to disagree but his head flew up and he met her eyes for the first time. “I could sleep in another room. Dalia’s old chambers, maybe? Or the tower? Then I won’t disturb you with-“</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jasmine couldn’t bear the words streaming from his mouth a moment longer. She lunged forward onto her knees and placed her hands directly on his where they rested on his knees. His teeth clicked as he shut his mouth and flinched a little at her sudden movement. Jasmine brought his hands up to her mouth and kissed his knuckles tenderly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wouldn’t have you anywhere but by my side every night,” she told him. His eyes widened in the face of such bald honesty. Before he could protest, she continued. “And I don’t hold it against you that you have nightmares. You’ve been through so much. We’d be fools to think you wouldn’t bear the scars.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His watery laugh sounded more like a sob than an actual attempt at humor. She leaned in a little and he wrapped his arms around her desperately. She tipped both of their bodies back until they were laying on the pillows, their legs tangled together and her fingers in his hair. His face was buried in her shoulder as he took comfort from her touch and her warmth. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sorry,” she whispered into his ear after a few minutes. His breathing, which had finally evened out into a more peaceful rhythm, hitched. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What for?” He asked, so exhausted he didn’t even bother to raise his head. She sighed. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“For not being here for you in the way you’ve needed me,” she admitted. He started to protest but she squeezed his shoulders a little and he fell silent. “I should have asked you how you were doing more. Really asked, not just the casual, in-passing ask. And I should never have asked you to leave off your blades at night if they help you sleep. It was selfish and small minded of me. You deserve to be cared for and treasured, not left on your own to navigate an entirely new way of life while I run around handling all manner of nonsense.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Jasmine, you’ve been the best part of all of this. Knowing you have my back… sleeping next to you is the best I’ve slept in years.” He insisted. She shuddered. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You haven’t slept through the night in weeks,” Jasmine murmured. He shrugged. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I haven’t slept through the night in years. Or the days,” he replied as nonchalant as if they were discussing the weather. She bit her lip to restrain a gasp as he continued. “See, I’d sleep in the middle of the day sometimes so I could be up during the night market. Sleep is hard when you’re out in the open. Before I had the tower, I slept where and when I could. So this whole ‘sleep through the night every night’ thing is still pretty new.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But Abu…” Jasmine wondered aloud. Aladdin just shrugged as he snuggled a little closer. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He’s still just a monkey. And he sleeps like the dead,” he replied sleepily. She could tell he was already nodding off. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, you have me now. I’ll always watch your back,” she whispered into his hair. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And I’ll watch yours,” he slurred. A moment later, a tiny snore let her know he had fallen back to sleep. She stayed up far later than she intended, thinking about their conversation. She knew it wasn’t over. Not by a long shot.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>At least it was a start. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The next morning, Jasmine woke with no feeling in her right arm. She wrinkled her nose in confusion and opened her eyes to a mass of fluffy black hair in her face. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She really did love his hair. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>As she admired her husband and lover, she flexed her shoulder to try and get some feeling back into her arm. She didn’t expect him to stay asleep but she wasted a moment on the hope. He was a notoriously light sleeper and now she knew why. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He moaned as she wriggled her arm and clenched her fingers. Opening his eyes, he realized where he had fallen asleep and lifted himself up onto his forearms. He smiled down at her with the sappiest look on his face. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good morning, my most radiant Sultan,” he purred in his low morning voice that always made her nerves fizz pleasantly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good morning, my most glorious Consort,” she giggled up into a kiss as he met her half way. When he pulled back, a small frown pulled at the corner of his lips. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sorry about last night. You should have pushed me off,” he told her, settling down beside her with his head propped up on his hand. Her brow furrowed at the thought. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There’s nothing to be sorry for,” she insisted. He looked at her with that disbelieving suspicion that she knew came not from his belief in her intentions but his past experiences. “I’m always happy to cuddle you after when you have a bad night. You seem to do better when we’re touching.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But I can’t always have to rely on you to be there when I have a bad dream,” he murmured. The frustration in his voice concerned her even further. “You have duties as Sultan that may take you away from our bed. What kind of consort would I be if I couldn’t handle a few nights on my own? I used to spend all of them on my own.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And what happened when you would have a nightmare on your own? Or did they just start now?” She asked. This was the opportunity she’d been waiting for. His flinch made her want to cry as he seemed to curl in on himself a little more. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, they started a long time ago. When I lost my mother,” he confessed. “Jamal used to beat me for causing a fuss when there were customers in the house or waking up the others so I learned to be quiet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Beat you?!” She exclaimed, sitting up so she could look at him properly. He mimicked her and took a cross legged position. Trying to rein in her fury, Jasmine took a breath and let it out. “He was wrong to hurt you, Aladdin.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, I know. But that’s just how it was. That’s one of the reasons I left the house. Jamal was getting more and more angry so I thought it was better to take my chances on the streets. I wasn’t entirely wrong but it was definitely scarier than I had thought it would be.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jasmine’s eyes filled with tears at dawning realization of the boy he had been and what he had gone through. He had been a child left to fend for himself in a big city with no true way to care for himself. She wiped the tears from her lashes with a quick swipe and focused on his face instead. He looked sheepish but a little proud all the same. The pride of a street boy who had defied the odds and survived on his own.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It wasn’t all bad. I learned how to steal food and trinkets from the market. I learned to rotate where I stole from so people wouldn’t get suspicious when they saw my face. Better to be just a ‘street rat’ than a thief. Vendors really don’t take well to thieves,” he said conspiratorially. She leaned towards him with the hope that he would continue. Her tears were hidden for the moment but she was sure the dam would break soon… just hopefully not before this conversation resolved. “See, I would do odd jobs for people around the market as a kid. Carrying stuff, delivering messages, watching stalls for a couple people. Little things but I did them well so when people would see me in the market, it wouldn’t tip them off that I might be there for another reason than helping someone out. Delivering messages was the best. I was running around anyway and people got used to me. And seeing me with an apple or loaf of bread was common because that’s how I’d be paid. So when I would steal something, people just assumed I’d carried a message. It worked like magic. Even as I got older and people stopped seeing a little kid they wouldn’t immediately alert the guards when I was around. It was the smartest thing I did on the street aside from finding my tower.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How did you find that tower?” she asked. He smiled a little sadly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There was this old man who would sell odds and ends in the market close to Amma’s house. When I was 15, he started asking for favors when the other vendors were starting to get annoyed with me. Dropping off deliveries, picking things up from repair shops, things like that. He paid me in food and sometimes even a coin if he didn’t have anything for me to eat. I ran errands for him pretty reliably for a few months before his health started to decline. Some kind of chest rot, I think. He couldn’t afford a doctor to really find out. He stopped coming to his stall every day so I decided to start manning it for him. I’m not the best salesman but I brought in some money for him and used it to buy food and what medicine I could to keep him comfortable. One night, he took me to the alley next to the room he rented. He showed me the stairs and told me never to tell anyone else unless I trusted them completely. He passed away the next day.” Aladdin paused in his story, wiping his eyes at the memories. Jasmine reached out her hand and held the fingers of his free hand tight.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Anyway, I took most of the furnishings from his room up to the tower. His stove was nearly impossible by myself but it was worth it. So most of the stuff I had there was his. I thought about keeping up his stall but the person he was renting the space from wouldn’t have it. They took the remaining wares that I hadn’t thought to hide since they weren’t super valuable as back rent that he apparently hadn’t paid for the month and told me to get lost. I was able to pawn some stuff over the course of a couple months and the tea set I kept. By then, I was mostly a fixture in the market and could come and go as I pleased. Not many people questioned me. I’d been stealing small things to make ends meet since that. Until I met this crazy girl in the market who didn’t know you have to pay for food,” he ended with a joke that didn’t fall as flat as it could have had she not burst into giggles.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I feel ridiculous for that now,” she admitted. “I know how money works. I know how markets work. But in the moment, I wasn’t thinking with my head. Just my heart.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I could tell. You were a real fish out of water. No basket. No escort. And wearing that ridiculously expensive overrobe in a dusty market. I knew you were special from the moment I met you,” he said sincerely. She stared at him oddly with her head tilted to one side.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Was I a mark to you initially?” she asked. He flushed a deep red. “Because I was wearing fine jewelry and I obviously didn’t fit in. You could have stolen my necklace, bracelet, and earrings without me noticing. So why did you help me instead of steal from me?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I… I have rules about who I steal from,” he admitted. “I only steal from people who would steal from me or treat me like street garbage. Certain vendors or other pickpockets. I’m not greedy in the usual way so I wouldn’t feel bad taking from someone like Jamal who threatened you or who would smack a street kid just for getting in their way.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I see. So you just thought I was special?” she asked shyly. He nodded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes. And I was right.” There was that confidence she had first seen in the marketplace and in his tower. There was the Aladdin who knew his worth without a doubt and was assured in his decisions. There was the man she had fallen in love with.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, I think you were. You are so much smarter than anyone gives you credit for. Except maybe Kahil. He knows,” she praised. He shrugged as his mouth kicked up into a half smirk.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, he gave me the idea for Jafar’s last wish. I was panicking on the inside before he did that,” he admitted. Jasmine shrugged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You managed to trick a genie into thinking you made a wish when you didn’t. Then you surprised him when you used your last wish to set him free. You have made so many changes here in the palace alone for the better and I know you that will soon spread to the rest of Agrabah. Even back then, you pegged me for a palace dweller just from looking at my clothes. You see and know and understand so much. It’s incredible,” she told him passionately. He stared at her with open mouthed amazement. The thought that he didn’t truly understand just how much she meant every word made Jasmine want to scream it from the highest tower of the palace. Instead, she pulled the hand she still held to her lips and kissed his knuckles just as she had done before. “Aladdin Al-Taweel, Prince Consort of Agrabah, Royal Vizier to the Sultana-to-be, you are the most important person in my life and I will never, ever take you for granted.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I love it when you call me that,” he whispered. She leaned close.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Which part?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Al-Taweel. I’ve never had a last name. My mother never told anyone who my father was or gave anyone her family name so I’ve never had one,” he told her. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well you have one now. And so will our children. And our children’s children,” she promised. He kissed her deeply, trying to infuse every ounce of love and gratitude into the touch to say all the things he couldn’t find the words for.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>When they parted, Jasmine gasped with pleasure and lack of air. They melted into the sheets wrapped around each other lazily. After a few more minutes of lazy kisses, she said,</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If you want to start wearing your blades to bed again, I wouldn’t mind, you know? If they help you sleep, I mean.” His eyes met hers and his brows furrowed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I… don't think I need them. Not knowing you have my back. I may rig up something in the headboard just in case but sleeping next to you is doing wonders for my sleeping patterns,” he told her. She shook her head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You said it yourself, you haven’t slept well in years. That isn’t going to change with just a few months and a change of scenery,” Jasmine insisted. He nodded, knowing she was right. “Wear them until you start to feel more comfortable. Leave them off as you see fit. I won’t push either way. As long as they don’t poke me when we… well, you know.” she giggled at the mortified look on his face.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh no never! I’d never-” he started to protest but then stopped when he realized she was laughing. Rolling his eyes, he leaned in to kiss her again. She quieted under his touch. She knew that she was the bolder one in their relationship so she tried to encourage him when he chanced to kiss her first or literally sweep her off her feet. It was nice to balance out their roles sometimes when their palace duties were so staunchly separated. He leaned back to look into her eyes and she saw a glimmer of something there. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you,” he murmured, pressing his lips to hers again. Then the corner of her mouth. Then her neck. He lavished soft touches on sensitive spots that had her sighing in delight. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“For what?” She asked when she could unscramble her brain enough to speak. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“For everything. For being you. For listening and understanding. For loving me as much as I love you,” he whispered against her skin like a prayer. Jasmine wrapped her arms around him, making him lose his balance and collapse right on top of her. She felt squished and protected in the best way with him on top of her. He choked a bit but didn’t fight her grip, instead sinking into the contact like water being poured back into a pond. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>They stayed like that for some time just enjoying each other’s presence and the occasional, languid kisses. As if they had all the time in the world. It was only when they heard a knock on the door announcing that their breakfast had arrived that they roused enough to put on their robes and let the servants in. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Dining al fresco, they talked more. About Aladdin’s need for food security. Jasmine’s need to know where he was because the last time she had lost track of him, he had almost died. Twice. About Aladdin apparently not having a fear of water as she had expected (sailing on The Djinn had given him far stronger positive memories than Jafar’s attempted murder). About her constant worry for her father’s health. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The list went on. They knew it couldn’t all be discussed and resolved in the course of one breakfast. No, this conversation would likely last the rest of their lives. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jasmine found that for once, the slow pace didn’t frustrate her at all. </span>
</p>
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